Cotton-cleaner



(No Model.

a. TURNER.

GOTT ON ULEANER.

No. 275,095.. Patented Apr. 3, 1883.

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WITNESSES N. PETERS Pholo-Lilllognpher. wmhin m, 0.0

UNITED STATES CHARLES w. TURNER, or

SENATOBIA, MISSISSIPPI.

COTTON-CLEANER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent N0. 275,095, dated April 3,1883.

Application filed January 2, 1883. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, CHARLES W. TURNER,

of Mississippi, have invented certain new and useful Improvements inCotton-Cleaners, of which the following is a specification.

The object of my invention is to provide an apparatus for separatingdust from seed cotton previous to its delivery to a gin, which shall besimple and inexpensive in construclion, efficient in operation, andreadily applicable to use in connection with any gin.

My invention therefore consists in. a certain new organization ofapparatus,as willhereiuafter be more fully described and claimed.

In the accompanying drawings illustrating my invention, Figure 1 is aside elevation of my improved apparatus; Fig. 2, a longitudinal sectionof the same, and Fig. 3 a transverse section on the lines 3 3 of Figs.1and 2.

The feed box or trough A is mounted on suitable legs or standards, B,and is provided at one end with a raised root, 0, the other end beingleft open to admit the cotton as it is supplied by an attendant. Thebottom of the trough consists of an endless slatted feedapron, D,mounted on rollers E and F, which arejournaled by means of studs G inslots H H, formed in the sides of the feed-box. The apron may be furthersupported by means of strips I K, secured to the inner sides of the boxunder the upper slats of the apron. The ends of the studs G of theroller E are provided with heads or blocks L, which bear against wedgesM, which in turn bear against the standards B, or against a strip orblock secured to the side of the trough. By driving in or drawing outthe wedges the roller E-may be moved in the slots H, thus stretching andtightening or loosening the apron. An opening, N, normally closed by ahinged sloping board, 0, may be formed at the front of the trough,through which uncleaned cotton may which may be bolted to the top ofthesides of the box, and thus securely hold the studs It in theirpivotal position at. the bottom of the slots. A shield, V, is placedunder the drum at the end of the apron to prevent uncleaned cotton fromfalling into the gin. Beyond and a little above the drum is asupplemental chamber, W, in which is located an exhaustfan, X, whichrevolves in the direction indicated by the arrow 1, causing a current inthe direction of the arrow 2, downdraft being prevented by projectingboards or shelves Y. Above the fan is a flue, Z, through which thecurrent is discharged. Between the fan and the drum is stretched a wire.screen, a, which is attached to the bottom of the side, I), of thechamber W, and a strip or board, 0, is attached to the bottom of thescreen, which forms, with the incline c, a hopper, d. The screen is freeto move to and fro, so that when the cotton accumulates in the hopper dit will force its way through into the gin-hopperlocated below; or thescreen may be rigid, an opening being left in the bottom of the hopperd. An opening, 6, is also left between the screen and the end of the boxfor the ingress of air to the fan. Rigidly secured to the shaft of thedrum P is a pulley,f, which is connected by means of a belt, 9, to theshaft of the gin (not illustrated) and by a brli, It, to the shaft ofthe exhaustfan. On the opposite end of the shaft of the drum I is aneccentric or cam, l, for the purpose presently to be explained. A bar,m, is pivoted to a block, m, on the side of box A, and is bent, asshown, to rest on the cam I, on which it is made to bear by means of aspring, 0. A strap or bail, n, wound on a drum, it, may be attached tothe end of the bar to raise it away from the cam. The bar in carries ahooked rod, 1), adjustable by means of a slide, q, provided with aset-screw, r. The hooked rod engages with a toothed wheel, 8, on theroller 1*, against which it is held by a. spring, t, so that when therod is lifted by the cam l the wheel 8 will be turned, and when the rodfalls the hook will take a new hold; and by the continuance of thesemovements the roller F will be revolved, and consequently the endlessapron will travel forward. The wheel 8 is prevented from falling back bymeans of the spring-pawl u.

The apparatus, organized as above indicated,

having been placed over a gin and the belting having been arranged asshown operates as will now be explained.

The gin having been set in motion, the drum P and exhaust-fan X will berapidly rotated, and the endless feed-apron moved forward. The cotton,being supplied to the trough,is carried by the apron to the tootheddrum, by which it is scattered and thrown against the screen a, throughwhich a strong current of air is drawn by the exhaust-fan X, and whichdraws through the screen dust and all other small foreign matter, andcarries it away through flue Z, permitting the cotton, freed fromimpurities, to fall into the hopper (1, through which it is delivered tothe gin.

I claim as my invention 1. The combination of the feed-box,thefeedapron, the drum, the exhaust-fan, and a screen interposeddirectly between the drum and the fan, so that the cotton may bescattered immediately in front of the screen and subjected to theexhaust-current while in a loose condi tion, substantially as set forth.

2. The combination of the feed-box having slots S S, the drum journaledin said slots, the feed-apron, the exhaust-fan located in the chamberWV, on the walls of which are secured the shelves Y for preventingdowndraft, substantially as described.

3. In a cotton-cleaner, the combination of the feeding-apron, theexhaust-fan, the scattering-drum, the screen adapted to move to and frobetween the drum and the fan, and the hopper d, formed by the incline 0,and the strip 0 on the bottom-of the screen, substantially as described.

4. In a cotton-cleaner, the combination of the feeding apparatus withthe exhaust-fan X and chamber W, provided with shelves Y, to preventdowndraft, substantially as described.

5. In a cotton-cleaner, the combination of the apron D, the supports IK, the shield V, and the rollers E F, adjustable in slots H by means ofthe wedges M, substantially as described.

6. The combination of the apron, the rollers, the cam, the barcarryingth'e adjustable hooked rod for turning the toothed wheel, thesprings for holding the rod upon the cam, and the hooked rod inengagement with the toothed wheel, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto subscribed my name this 18th day ofDecember, A. D. 1882.

CHARLES W. TURNER.

Witnesses:

G. L. MoCLEDoN, D. U. HOLLAND.

